Tama County voters have choices in GOP races for Senate, House, Governor; Demos to pick for House

Primary Vote is Tuesday, June 3

June 2, 2014

There's no county races in the Iowa Primary next Tuesday, June 3, but Republicans will vote on candidates for U.S. Senate, House and Governor.

On the Democratic ballot, the race is also for Iowa House?District 1.

Both parties are selecting candidates to face off in the November 4 General Election to fill the spot now held by U. S. Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Waterloo.) He is the lone Democrat candidate for U.S. Senate seeking to replace Senator Tom Harkin (D-Cummin) who is retiring at the end of his term this year.

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For Tama?County Courthouse jobs Republican incumbents County Attorney Brent Heeren, Treasurer Michelle Yuska and Recorder Deborah Kupka are all unopposed in the primary.

Heeren seeking a ninth term as Tama County Attorney. Vest has served the 1st District for 20 years and will be running for his 5th four-year term.

Kupka, Clutier, is a candidate for her third full term and has been in the post nine years.

Yuksa, incumbent treasurer, is seeking her second, four-year term.

For elected positions for which there is no candidate in the Primary, a candidate can also be nominated for the Nov. 4 ballot by county party convention or for minor parties by petition according to Karen Rohrs, Tama County elections coordinator in the office of Laura Kopsa, county auditor and commissioner of elections.

Republican-

Iowa House District 72

Dean Fisher, rural Garwin, is seeking the Republican nomination unopposed for a second , two-year term.

Democrat- -

Iowa House District 72

Ben Westphal, rural Marshalltown, is on the ballot for the Democratic nomination for House 72.

The district includes all of Tama County, primarily the southern and western portions of Marshall County and the southeastern corner of Black Hawk County including LaPorte City.

Crowded Fields

Primary Election Day will of course tell the when the votes are counted that night.

However, Tama County?Commissioner of Elections Laura Kopsa told The News-Herald on Tuesday Iowa election law provides if no candidate receives 35 percent of the total vote in the primary the party candidate will be nominated at the respective party state convention.

In particular, the number of candidates seeking the GOP?Senate nomination and the Democrat 1st District House nod raise the possibility of a race going to convention as a reality this year.

U.S. Senate- Republicans

Joni Ernst, 43, a Lt. Colonel in the Iowa Army National Guard, former Montgomery County Auditor and currently serving as State Senator for District 12- Mnotgomery and Page counties.

Mark Jacobs, 52, West Des Moines, was peviously CEO of electric energy company Reliant Energy. He founded the non-profit organization, Reaching Higher Iowa, to raise awareness of the need for improvement in Iowa public education.

Scott Schaben, 39, Ames, - enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1993 and served until 1999 so he could attend Iowa State University. Heworked as a sales professional in his family business until 2006 when he started his career in the automotive industry.

Matt Whitaker, 44, Clive, was, over five years, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa, Hre holds BA and law degree from the University of iowa.

Sam Clovis- 64, Hinton, Iowa, is currnetly a professor. He received his degree in Political Science and a commission as a Second Lieutenant and took up a career in the Air Force that spanned 25 years. He has taught at various other institutions including Iowa State University in the Masters of Public Administration program. hosted a daily conservative talk show on KSCJ, 1360 am, in Sioux City/

U.S. House District 1 - Republican

Gail E. Bolivar, 64, Marshalltown is an attorney and on the Board of Directors of the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association (PIABA). He was commissioned in the USAF in 1971 and completed pilot training in 1972. He was an instructor pilot from 1972 to 1975. He left active duty in 1976. He joined the Air Force Reserves in 1980 and retired from the Iowa National Guard in 1999.

Steve Rathje, 58, live just outside Cedar Rapids. He is the Founder and CEO of International Procurement Services, Inc. as well as The Genesis Group, Inc - which brings manufacturing jobs back to the United States.

Rod Blum- 59, Dubuque - entered the software industry on the ground floor and hi software company grew from 5 to 325 employees in just five years. He is also a real estate developer, high school basketball coach, student pilot and conservative columnist.

Governor -Republican

Tom Hoefling, 53, Lohrville, is a long-time national conservative political activist, writer, publisher, organizer, and consultant. He is known primarily for his pro-life work and his defense of traditional marriage. He has also been a long-time advocate for the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. In February of 2012, America's Party, in convention, nominated Tom Hoefling to be its standard-bearer for the office of President of the United States.

Terry Branstad, 68, Des Moines was Govenror elected 2011 He also served form1983-99 and has become Iowa's longest serving govenror.

His iniatives have included jobs and education during currnet term.

Democrat- U.S. Senate

Bruce Braley, 56, grew up in Brooklyn, Iowa. He ran for Congress in 2006 and was re-elected three times, in 2008, 2010, and 2012. In Congress, Braley's cmapaign says he is known as an advocate for Iowa veterans, a supporter of small businesses, and a voice for strengthening Iowa's working families. is running for US Senate to keep fighting for the middle class, because that's where he comes from.

Braley attended college at Iowa State University where he was a member of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Iowa College of Law

U.S. House District 1- Democrat

Anesa Kajtazovic -27, Waterloo is serving her 2nd term in the Iowa House of Representatives - 61st District. She earned. both her Business and Public Administration Bachelor Degrees from the University of Northern Iowa in 2007. She was born in Western Bosnia and at the age of seven,was exposed to the destruction of the conflict in Bosnia. She and her parents and sister fled the country as refugees. They spent some time in refugee camps before taking the opportunity to move to Iowa in 1997.

Pat Murphy-54, Dubuque, was first elected by special election to the Iowa House in 1989, Pat Murphy served as the House Democratic Minority Leader from 2003 2006 and as Speaker of the Iowa House from 2007 2010 before stepping down from leadership in 2011. He is a graduate of Dubuque Wahlert and Loras College, where he earned a B.A. in Speech Communication with minors in History and Political Science.

Monica Vernon, 56, Cedar rapids, is currently serving her second four-year term on the Cedar Rapids City Council. She is serving her fifth year as Mayor Pro Tempore, Chair of the Council's Community/Economic Development Committee and past Chair of the Metropolitan Planning Organization. She holds a BA in Journalism and an MBA from the University of Iowa

Swati Dandekar- 63, Marion, has served on the Linn-Mar School Board, spent ten years in the state legislature as a member of the Iowa House and Senate and became the first democratic woman to chair the Senate Commerce Committee. Swati received national recognition in 2011 as the President of the National Foundation of Women Legislators. That same year, she was appointed as the democratic member of the Iowa Utilities Board. She earned her a bachelor's degree in biology and chemistry from Nagpur University and a post graduate diploma in dietetics from Bombay University in India. She was appointed as the Democratic member of the Iowa Utilities Board in 2011.

Democrat- Governor-

Jack Hatch, 64, Des Moines, served in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1985 to 1993. In 1993 he accepted the position of State Director with U.S. Senator Tom Harkin. He returned to the Iowa House after winning election in November of 2000 and then won his first term to the Iowa Senate in 2002.Presently, Jack is chair of the Senate Health & Human Services Budget Subcommittee. He also serves on the Economic Growth, Human Resources, State Government, Labor & Business Relations, and Appropriations committees.